3.5 stars

Murder for the Modern Girl will drag you back to the 1920s from the first page. I had no idea what to expect here - every new development was another surprise.

"I couldn't help dancing down the sidewalk, knowing I looked perfect for tonight's party: fresh and pretty and glowing with a mysterious kind of something that would send the fellas gathering like moths to a candle. I grinned.
Honestly, murder worked better than mascara."

If any character could be said to contain multitudes, it is most certainly Ruby. Overenthusiastic flapper, highly intelligent and driven future lawyer, and... mind-reading murderer? Now, I'm not advocating for murder, but I am all for a woman standing up for herself. I love how Ruby educates herself and learns about poisons and weapons to protect herself. Maybe don't take the next step into active murder, but self-defence is always reasonable.

"Keep your head down. Work ten times harder. Be better than them every chance you get, and don't expect anyone to notice. You'll have to be smart and charming and humble and confident and everything all the time, all at once. Remember that other gals aren't your competition, they're your allies. Stick to them like glue, support them - you're stronger together. And don't pay any attention to the bastards dragging you down. Believe me, there will be plenty. None of them are smarter than you, even the smart ones."

Murder for the Modern Girl does come on pretty strong with the '20s slang; it can be a little heavy-handed, but it goes along hand in hand with Ruby's personality. There aren't many characters that could pull it off without being obnoxious, but Kulper made it work. The fantasy twist was interesting but did take me out of the story at times. Because everything else feels so real, the mindreading and face changing can feel extraneous. Despite this, the narrative is fast-paced, and the intensity stays high throughout most of the story. There are some terrifying villains here - both on the crazy end of the scale and the cool, collected psychopathic end, keeping the danger levels surprisingly high and feeling incredibly genuine.

My favourite part of Murder for the Modern Girl is the care with which these characters hold space for each other. Maggie is the sweetest heiress alive - even her thoughts are nothing but kind (and Ruby would know). Supportive and protective, their friendship is beautiful. When Ruby starts getting to know her mysterious chameleon man, they quickly fall into sync, like two vigilante crime fighters genetically designed to work together. They're both holding back some pretty big secrets (and fears), and while there may have been ulterior motives at first, a sweet and intense relationship develops between them.

"It wouldn't do me any good to fall for this kind-souled boy with honest eyes"

For a fun and surprisingly complex narrative, look no further than Murder for the Modern Girl.

This was one of of, if not my most, anticipated reads of the entire year. It seemed as if it was made for me: a historical fantasy, set in the 1920s, a vigilante flapper who murders horrible men, a soft-spoken genius shapeshifter investigating her, and a swoony romance between the two. This should have been my perfect book, but, most disappointingly, the execution of the story did not hold up to the magnificent premise.

One of the most disappointing aspects of this book was the setting. I love the 1920s era and was so excited to read a book set in 1928 Chicago but it never truly felt like 1928 Chicago to me. In what was probably a disservice to this author, I read Before the Devil Breaks You before reading this book, which is another historical fantasy set in the 1920s, and the worldbuilding in that series is so well crafted that the time period and setting feel like their own characters. Which just made the lack of it in this book so much more apparent. The author tried their best to insert period appropriate slang but it just felt clunky and distracting, and was just way too over the top.

Another issue I had was how confusing it was to read, especially at first. I read an eARC of this so it’s entirely possible that was changed before publication, but in my version there was nothing to differentiate the normal text from the thoughts Ruby was reading. Someone’s thoughts would just start being relayed in the middle of a sentence. If this was purposeful on the author’s part, and was meant to show how difficult it was to be Ruby, I understand where they were trying to accomplish, but it ultimately just made the text hard to comprehend and took quite a while to get used to.

An additional qualm I had with this book was the murder investigation. I was really looking forward to this aspect of the story but the investigation doesn’t even really kickoff until about 40% into the book and it never really feels like a true cat and mouse game between Guy and Ruby. The reason for this, and another one of my problems with the book, is that Guy falls for Ruby so quickly. It’s one of the fastest instances of insta-love I’ve ever read and trust me, I’ve read quite a few. Almost equally unbelievable is the fact that Ruby starts to fall for him fairly quickly, as well. This made absolutely no sense to me, as she’s presented as being a closed-off, good time, one night only, kind of girl. I could understand this change if there had been proper time allotted to the growth of her character and their relationship but their wasn’t. Truthfully, the relationship between the two was extremely lackluster. I couldn’t give you a single reason why they liked one other.

I’m used to having to suspend my disbelief a little when it comes to fiction, sometimes it’s a necessity, and I fully realize that. But I just couldn’t suspend my disbelief enough in regards to the fact that Guy didn’t realize Ruby was the city’s avenging angel until he did. I also couldn’t suspend my disbelief about basically the entire conspiracy plot. It was just too much.

But all that’s to say, I don’t think this is a bad book. I fully believe if the author had taken some more time to flush out some of the things I mentioned, it could have been fantastic. The ideas and concepts were there, I just wish the execution had been a bit better.

A thoroughly unique crime novel told from the dual viewpoints of a mind-reading young flapper and a shape-shifting want-to-be doctor. Not a traditional mystery, more time is spent catching the villain than figuring out who it is. But that's fine. The fun of the book is in watching the two main characters gradually begin to work together and to fall in love.

I almost put the book down after the first chapter, when one of our narrators kills a man. I'm glad I didn't. Even though overall this is a fun read, it opens the door for good discussions on questions like when is it right to take justice into our own hands? This would be a great book club read.

Thank you to the publisher for providing an eARC through NetGalley for an honest review.

I liked this one. The first chapter instantly drew me in, but then it got a bit muddled and confusing for me. Once things picked up around the halfway mark, I was completely hooked again.
Ruby was such an interesting character. I liked her sass and her strength, and I thought her voice was really distinct. However, she reads minds and this confused me because Ruby would be thinking things herself in reaction to what others were thinking or saying but there was no way to distinguish between things. I think italics for the parts in other people’s heads would have helped to clear up confusion. I did like the element of mind reading and I thought it made it interesting for Ruby to figure out who was involved.
Guy was not a character I really cared about. Once we learned more about him, I liked him more. But in the beginning, I preferred Ruby’s chapters.
The relationship between Ruby and Guy was good. I liked how it changed, and I thought it was sweet. This romance was just kind of there though, and there wasn’t a lot of build up for it. My favourite relationship of Ruby’s was her friendship with Maggie. Maggie was a fantastic character, and I loved her loyalty.
One thing that annoyed me while I was reading was that some words would be broken in two. I’m not sure if it was just a weird formatting issue in the arc, but it interrupted the flow of reading for me. Words like ambulance or component would be broken in two: ambu-lance and com-ponent. This had me reading it differently from how I would’ve if the word had been one piece. This occurred quite often with seemingly random words, and it just really pulled me away from the story. The writing style was otherwise quick and easy to read, and I liked Ruby’s style of speaking. The book is set in the 1920s so there was some fun slang in here.
The plot was really interesting here. It wasn’t really a mystery because Ruby figured out pretty quickly who was behind things, but she had to figure out how to get evidence. Meanwhile Guy was investigating the “angel killer” who was actually Ruby. These two different plots didn’t intertwine until the second half of the book. I felt like the second half of the book was where it really got good. It was exciting, fast-paced, and I really enjoyed reading it.

4.5!

I was so pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this book! The synopsis has all my buzzwords and it absolutely delivered what it promised.

I think if you liked Evie from The Diviners you will enjoy Ruby as the main character of this book. Ruby is an 18 year old flapper party gal in 1927 Chicago who has the ability to hear people's thoughts, which she uses to kill men who are abusing women (good for her). It's written in alternating perspectives between Ruby and a shapeshifting, mega-anxious genius who is investigating Ruby's wake of poisoned men. Sometimes Ruby's internal monologue got a bit cringey but overall I found her incredibly charming and enjoyed her POV.

The plot/story is a little convenient since Ruby can, you know, read the minds of everyone around her, but the fun is in trying to find tangible proof of the things she knows. Not to mention the guy she's teaming up with/falling for is investigating her crimes (aka a top tier trope).

I really hope this turns out to be a series. I'd happily read more from Ruby and "Guy" (iykyk). I bet this would make an incredible audiobook as well.

Murder for the Modern Girl is a lovely form of historical fiction that takes place in the 1920's with two different characters.

We have Ruby, who is a flapper with the ability to read minds and chooses to use the power to kill off bad men. Then we have Guy, someone who has the ability to shapeshift. The two soon come to meet and sparks fly.

The plot at first took a bit to get through, but soon I was completely sucked in! After finishing there were quite a few questions in my head that I thought would be answered towards the end, but overall, it was a good read.

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<p>Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for providing me with an ARC to read and give an honest review.</p>
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<p>The premise of this book was so interesting and because of my schedule it was hard to find the time to read it, but I was so excited to start it. I love books set in the Roaring Twenties. Unfortunately, I had to DNF this book. I kept trying to push myself through it in the hopes it would get better but it reached a point where I realized I was really just wasting my own time when I could read books I would actually enjoy.</p>
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<p>The writing itself was very mediocre, which made me think maybe this was a debut author. In that case, I would have been a bit more understanding, but this was not the author's debut book. She has already written a few books. </p>
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<p>There were also quite a few grammatical errors or lines that just didn't read right. For example the line "Good-for-nothing drunk bum bad husband worse father." It is a concept that should have been learned in elementary or middle school that you cannot just take on a bunch of adjectives to each other without separating them with commas. I get that that scene is supposed to represent all the thoughts that she is reading from people's minds, but without separations, it is easy to lose your readers.</p>
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<p>Not to mention that there is hardly any distinguishing factors between the thoughts of other people or even of the main character and the actual narration. Typically authors italicize thoughts to show the difference, but it gets so confusing when everything blends together. </p>
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<p>There were also many issues where there were not spaces between words like "Idon't" which is something I hope has been fixed in the published version.</p>
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<p>Another line that was just weird was "with the patience of a person who worked for tips." I don't have any grammatical issues with it but that line just felt odd to me.</p>
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<p>Ruby was also quite privileged, at one point she is comparing herself to the trustfund kids her age and basically was talking about how she was not a rich kid like them as if her father is not the state attorney and as if her family does not have chauffeurs or body guards or things like that.</p>
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<p>Guy Rosewood would have been an interesting character if his character didn't fall flat.</p>
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One word: fantastic.

I had high hopes for this one and, fortunately, felt that it lived up to expectations. This dual perspective paranormal vigilante story set in 1928 kept my attention from page one.

Pros: Both perspectives (Ruby & Guy) are interesting and well written, the paranormal abilities do not give some all encompassing and overwhelming power to the characters leaving room for believable conflict, the fact that you are made aware of all of the “bad guys” early on really added to the story in this case,1920’s setting, fantastic use of secondary characters, and well-paced.

Negatives: It could have benefited from just a little bit more of the 1920’s references and lingo.

I thoroughly enjoyed and highly recommend Murder For The Modern Girl. With elements of mystery, fantasy, science, notable feminist themes, and a heartfelt romance, this was a fast paced and gripping read.

I do think it’s important to note that if you’re hoping for loads of plot twists, it will not deliver. There were no shocking or unexpected moments, but I don’t think this did the book a disservice. With a mind reader protagonist, it would be difficult to keep plot points under wraps, but I never felt that her ability was an annoying convenience that hindered the plot by hurrying it along or making things too easy for the main characters.

On the topic of their abilities, I absolutely loved the way both Guy and Ruby’s powers were written. The established limits ensured they weren’t “overpowered” and had me extremely invested and interested in just what they could do— especially in the case of Guy, and how his emotions impacted/obstructed him.

I did hope for more 20’s charm beyond slang, which sometimes felt forced and a tad overused. There were times when I felt like the author had searched a bunch of terms and ran with them; “absotively” was particularly cringey, but I digress. This does tie into how this did sometimes read like a debut novel despite how much I enjoyed it. It felt like there could have been more in depth detail provided into subplots and more development in establishing relationships and adversaries. What was there was thoroughly enjoyable and entertaining, but there could have been more expanded on.

I was rooting for the romance before they even met, which is saying something. They contrasted so well while still being able to bond over their shared experiences and interests, and they absolutely SERVED on the shy boy x confident girl standpoint. They delivered both angst and the cutest fluffy scenes, and seeing them grow to trust and understand each other was so heartwarming. That being said, as stated above, there could have been more time devoted to allowing them to really get to know each other before becoming allies, let alone romantic interests.

As previously mentioned, there were little plot twists, but I didn’t find they took away from the compelling manner in which the plot progressed. I breezed through this book within two days! I couldn’t put it down and was fully engrossed in the moments of suspense, romance, tension—both romantic and murderous— and had a truly excellent time with Murder For The Modern Girl.

Overall, 5/5 ⭐️ and I will probably be picking up a physically copy!

I love paranormal mysteries set in the 20s and this is a good story.
It got since the first pages and kept me hooked till the end. The world buidling and the historical background are well developed, the mystery is solid, and the characters are fleshed out.
I want to read other books by this author,
This one is recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Thank you to NetGalley and Holiday House for the eARC! This review contains spoilers.

When I read the synopsis for this book, I was immediately intrigued. A murder mystery, set in the 1920s, with supernatural abilities and vigilante justice. What more could I ask for? In the end, I gave this book four and a half stars, and I would absolutely recommend it to anyone looking for a fun Great Gatsby glitz and glamour mystery.

Possibly my favourite thing about this book was the decision to reveal the identity of the murderer at the start of the book. Ruby can read minds, and if I hadn’t read the book myself, I would assume that would take away the entire mystery and tension element of the book, but it doesn’t. Despite knowing who’s behind everything, there’s still so much to investigate and discover. Other characters get involved and weave in and out of the story, and there were enough reveals to keep me so close to the edge of my seat I was basically falling off it.

I could spend the entire review talking about this particular plot point, but I won’t. However, I’m so glad that Kendall Kulper didn’t kneecap Ruby’s powers at convenient times to keep the mystery going, especially since so much time was dedicated to building said abilities. After reading the minds of her targets to determine whether they deserve to die, not doing the same to someone posing a real threat to her family would have felt out of place.

As for Ruby’s vigilante justice, I loved that she had clear rules and moral codes for herself and that she knew how to get away with it. Using the incompetency of the police to make a city safer is brilliant, and the fact that so many women banded together in support of Ruby and vouch for the good she was doing when the police actually started trying to capture her was amazing.

Ruby was an amazing character to follow, from her abilities to her loyalty to those she cares about, and the fact that she connected the evidence so quickly. She’s so interesting and unique that I wanted her to succeed in everything she did, even if that was murder.

Additionally, Guy’s character and how he used his powers were super cool. The way that his use of his powers was so wrapped up in his desire to hide from his past was great, and the way he improved throughout the book was wonderful to watch. I’m probably a little bit biased towards him because I was so relieved that there was at least one competent person in the police force, especially when the stakes kept getting higher. The only reason that I didn’t give this book five stars was that despite Guy putting the pieces together for the other poisonings, he couldn’t connect Ruby being in an alley with someone who died of poison, despite knowing she was definitely tough enough to kill someone.

All in all, you should read this book. The mystery comes together so well and I was really cheering the characters on the entire time. Kendall Kulper has done an amazing job capturing the glamourous and not so glamorous sides of Ruby and Guy’s world and I’m so glad I read this book.

As soon as I started reading this book, I was immediately captivated by Ruby’s unique voice. Part Enola Holmes, part Flavia de Luce, and—to quote David S. Pumpkins—she’s her own thing… Ruby just bursts from the page.

To be clear, this novel contains a dual narrative, and there’s nothing wrong with Guy’s portions, but he spends so much time pretending to be someone he’s not that he’s lost sight of who he is…and so in that regard, the hesitancy really does come through on the page, which is just as admirable as having a bigger-than-life personality.

Ruby is essentially a Teen Dexter; she’s turned vengeance into an art form, and her ability to read minds is her most valuable asset. Guy, of course, has a secret of his own, and it’s only through collaboration that they achieve their goals.

This book was a neat blend of historical fiction, mystery, and paranormal… with a dash of romance, of course. The plot moves fairly quickly, and there’s always a new development or a realized connection etc. Ruby and Guy are both interesting and likeable characters, and they work well together.

I would absolutely recommend Murder for the Modern Girl. This is perfect for YA readers who enjoy historical fiction—1920s Chicago has never been more exciting. There’s certainly plenty of material, so it will be interesting to see if we get more of Ruby and Guy in the future.



I received a digital ARC of this book from Holiday House/NetGalley

I wish I loved this but I didn’t. The writing was confusing, the characters were annoying and it was not a good read for me. I love the roaring 20s and murder mystery and this could’ve been more😭

Thank you to NetGalley and Holiday House for access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was such a unique and fun read! I loved Ruby and her dedication to helping other women who are in dangerous or compromising situations. The world building was also very nicely paced and reflective of that 1920's Gatsby-esque glamour.

Murder for the Modern Girl was an enjoyable, exciting read! Set during prohibition in the 1920s, the story follows Ruby, daughter of the state attorney and carefree flapper who's only concerned with a good time.

Or so we think.

Kulper weaves murder, mystery, romance, and magical realism together in an engaging and enthralling read. Our heroine and her romantic lead are both likable and well-fleshed out, which make their alternating points-of-view easy to read and each engaging in their own right. Both characters harbor secrets and special gifts, which are well-integrated into the plot without being over the top. Although not completely free of disturbing elements (murder is in the title, after all), it is a clean read that can be enjoyed by teens and grown ups alike.

Thank you so much to Holiday House for the advanced readers copy of the book in exchange for honest feedback.

Author: Kendall Kulper
Publishing Date: 5/31/22

3.5 stars

I was this close to DNF’ing this book but around 24% it started grabbing my attention. It was super slow and confusing in the beginning but once it started to pick up I started to enjoy the book more.

I really liked Ruby. She is a tough character and a vigilante for women in danger. She has a good head on her shoulders and can read minds which comes in handy. Guy (let’s call him Guy to avoid spoilers) was adorable and a little bit of a mess but understandably so. He needed someone like Ruby to come in and shake things up and provide the strength to forgive and accept himself. With his shape shifting powers he has problems of his own. Maggie, Ruby bestie was the best. She is the type of friend you really need in life. Vivian was also fun as well. I really liked how much Ruby cared about her family, friends and protecting women from danger. Her methods are extreme but understandable in this time when women didn’t have much support or protection. Overall, pretty decent characters.

The writing could use some work. It just wasn’t always engaging. I found myself skimming some pages here and there. The plot was getting better as I kept reading but it took time for it to get interesting. The ending is as nice as well. I’m happy I gave this book a chance and it was a good read.

*Received via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

4.25 stars

Think the Diviners X, the untouchables X murderous revenge for women wronged!

We have two leads with powers that find themselves falling into each other's paths as a thick plot of murder and corruption holds a city. One comes by chance, and the other unknowingly is hunting the other in the act of justice.
This book has a great idea of moral compasses and how justice isn't black and white, AND YES, I AM ON THE ANGEL's SIDE!

Ruby and Guy were so sweet, and I genuinely adored them, as she is a kickass murderess, and he is an innocent scientist. Unfortunately, their paths crossing happened in the worse way and almost got her killed, which made the plot very interesting!

Ruby is a teenage girl with a secret — make that two. Firstly, she's able to read people's minds. Secondly, she uses that mind reading power to target and kill evil men.

Guy is a morgue custodian who sneaks in after-hours to teach himself how to do autopsies.

The two are unlikely friends and, eventually, even more. But Guy is unknowingly circling in on Ruby's secrets.

Ft. prohibition, crime bosses, the greatest best friend to grace the pages of a book (Maggie is a goddess among women), and beautiful writing.

This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.
Before I could finish reading this book it got archived and there's no way I can review a book I didn't finish reading.

I was super excited after reading the synopsis of this one. I loved the diviners series and thought this might be another play on that. Unfortunately it was a very unrealized and underwhelming story in the long run.

Ruby while using her unique powers finds and kills people who have wronged. He love Guy the shapeshifter is just kind of there. The plot and story were kind of all over and the place. The interactions between characters felt forced and too unrealistic in the long run.

I loved the concept of this story and the 1920’s aspect but it just didn’t come close to hitting the mark for me.